Song of the Spirit
by Sodasgirl212
Summary: Annie Callaghan, a spirited first class blond has boarded Titanic with her best friend, Rose Dewitt Bukator. We all know how the story goes but Rose and Jack weren't the only ones who fell in love on the "unsinkable" ship.
1. Chapter 1: In Chains

**Hi, this is my first Titanic fanfic. I've seen Titanic like 50,000 times in my life and every time I watch it I cry and fall in love with it some more. I really hope you guys enjoy it!**

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After all these years I was going back to America... in chains. I was now sitting in the back seat of a car with my mother, staring down at my hands that had been preoccupied by fiddling with the golden locket around my neck for the past hour.

"Annalisa Elizabeth Callagahan," I looked up at the sound of my mother's stern voice, my hands freezing. "Stop playing with that locket of yours; it's improper." _It's not like there is anyone to see me doing it, Mother _was what I wanted to say but remained silent and dropped the chain. I ajusted the brimmed hat that lay on my light blond locks that had recenty been pulled away from my face and into a tight bun. I looked down at my traveling outfit and sighed. Long gone where the days of childhood where I could run about in a sun dress, barefoot, with my long hair flowing behind me; what replaced it was the proper and dull process of growing up. The outfit was awfully uncomfortable; it consisted on a corset, a white button-up linen shirt, tucked into the long gray skirt that reached my toes, a light gray button up jacket and finally the horrible hat on my head. The only bit of real color in the entire outfit was the light blue flower on top of the hat that matched my eyes.

The car came to a sudden halt and just as they had taught us in finishing school, I waited for the car door to open and a hand to be offered. I took the gloved had of the driver and made my way out, Mother following close behind. When I emerged I was greeted by the sound and sight of millions of people, waiting to board the _Titanic_. My eyes wandered up the rows of people until my line of sight reached the ship and I gasped. It was huge! I stood there mezmerized but was pulled out of my own world by the sound of a loud car horn coming my way. I turned and instantly recognized Rose's car. The Dewitt Bukator's car, that is.

My father, Thomas Callaghan was telling our drivers where to take the luggage and my mother, Virgina Callaghan was standing by my father, assuming the position and look of any proper wife. I raised my voice over the sound of the chatter near by. "Mother, I'm going to go greet Rose. I'll tell them we're here." Rose, Mrs. Dewitt Bukator and Rose's fiancce, Cal were planning on boarding Titanic with us. I moved around the car and instantly saw the three.

"It doesn't look any bigger than the Mauretania," I heard Rose state, her voice sounding unimpressed.

"Please, it's 100 feet longer than the Mauretania and far more luxurious." Cal protested.

Suddenly I spoke up as I walked closer to them. "I'm sorry to say this, but I have to agree with him." All three pairs of eyes swiveled in my direction. I only got one smile and that was from Rose. Rose and I had met when we were 11 years old, at a party of my Mother's, where we were both miserable. The moment we started talking, there was a connection. We were both little girls who hated the world they lived in and who desperatly wanted to escape. All through out our teenage years we had gushed about the many adventures we were going to have when we grew; and the promise to each other that we would never become... well, become our Mothers. "You can't be blaze about the Titanic," Rose and I hooked our elbows together and I turned to Cal, greeting him with a tight smile. "Mr. Hockley."

"Ms. Callaghan, thank you for helping prove my point." He said, a sarcastic smile on his face.

"Not a problem." I subtly spat at him, hate evident in my eyes. "But please, call me Annie." Cal had never liked me, hated me even and the same feelings were returned. I overheard a conversation between him and Mrs. Dewitt Bukator where he said that I was a bad influence on Rose and that I was too "spirited" for a girl my age. Please, if anyone was the bad influence, it was Cal. Always ordering her around, making choices for her. And yes I _was_ very "spirited", I rushed into things before thinking and usually ended up being the gossip at the tea party but I couldn't help it!

Cal opened his mouth to reply but what suddenly interrupted by the sound of my mother's voice. "If anyone is calling you anything it will be Annalisa. Not Anna. Not Annie." Mother turned to Ruth and kissed her on each cheek while smiling. "Ruth, so good to see you, darling."

"Wonderful to see you too, Virgina." her eyes moved to my father. "Good day, Mr. Callaghan."

"Hello, Mrs. Dewitt Bukator, Rose, Caledon." Father turned towards the ship. "Are you all ready to board?"

"Yes, Father." I answered and Rose and I began to follow my Mother and Father.

Rose then leaned over and whispered in my ear. "I'll still call you Annie." I lightly smiled at her and squeezed her arm. Slowly we began to assend the planks leading up and into the magnificent ship.

Cal and Rose were sharing a cabin, Mrs. Dewitt Bukator had one of her own, Father and Mother were sharing one, and I somehow I had managed to persuade Father into letting me have my own cabin. I suppose that's one of the many perks to being "Daddy's Little Girl."

My stewardess, Alice had escorted me to my room and as I stepped in I had never seen anything so extravegant. The beautiful wood panelling, fancy furniture, my own private promenade deck. It was all so over whelming that I didn't even heard Alice's quiet, sweet voice behind me.

"Miss?" Alice asked, I'm guessing for the second time.

"Yes, Alice?"

"Is there anything else that you need?" She questioned.

"Could you please unload my suitcases, Alice, and when I come back would you be ready with some outfit choices for dinner?"

"Of course, miss, but where are you going?"

"Oh, just over to Ms. Dewitt Bukator's room. I'll be gone for about an hour."

"Yes, Miss." Alice curtsied and went through the doorway leading to my bedroom.

Rose and I were just three doors down from eachother so it wasn't a far walk. Turning the doorknob, I walked in to see Rose and her stewardess, Trudy, I think her name was, unloading paintings from a box. I smiled. Rose was always so in love with art and so was I but I was more a music person. When I saw the piano in my room, an instant grin formed on my lips.

Trudy pulled out one of the paintings. "This one?"

"No." Rose said, in a quiet voice, trying to remember what box it was in. "It had a lot of faces on it." I walked up behind her, giving her a smile and began going through the boxes with them._ Faces, faces, faces, lots of faces..._ I thought. Then I found it.

"Ah, here it is." I said, pulling it out.

"Thank you, Annie." Rose said, taking the painting from me.

"Would you like all of them out, Miss?" Trust asked.

"Yes... this room could use a little color." Rose confirmed, moving around the room, looking for a place to put the painting. When suddenly Cal walked in, holding a glass of champagne.

"God, not those finger-paintings again." I looked over at him, subtly rolling my eyes. "They certainly were a waste of money."

But Rose being Rose had a cool, collected comeback handy. "The difference between Cal's taste in art and mine is that I actually have some." Rose put the painting down on the sofa. "They're fasinating."

I walked up beside her, putting my hands on my hips and slightly tilting my head to the left. "It's like being in a dream or something... There's truth but no logic."

"Exactly what I was thinking." Rose said, turning to pick up another painting of a ballerina that I was fairly fond of.

"Who is the artist?" Trudy questioned, seeming very interested on the topic.

"Something Picasso." Rose suggested.

"Something Picasso. He won't amount to a thing." Cal scoffed. "He won't, trust me."

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**There's the first chapter for you! I know it's not super exciting now but it'll get there. :) Please comment!!! **

**Love,**

**Sodasgirl212**


	2. Chapter 2: Meeting

It was around mid-day when I sat down to lunch with The Dewitt Bukators, Mr. Ismay, Mr. Andrews and Molly Brown. I was across the table from Rose, who looked like she was in a completely different world. I sighed; Rose had been like this ever since her mother had started planning the wedding. I _knew_ Rose didn't love Cal and that she didn't want this marriage at all but... still. I looked down at my lap, smoothing out wrinkles in my dress. I fingered one of the pink flower patterns, out of the many that covered the white fabric. Uncomfortably, I adjusted the belt around my small waist, while trying to pay attention to the conversation that was going on.

Mr. Ismay had been going on about Titanic for what seemed like forever. "She is the largest moving object made by the hand of man in all history." He then motioned to Mr. Andrews who was on my left. "And our master shipbuilder, Mr. Andrews here, designed her from the keel plates up."

I turned to Mr. Andrews, who now had a kind smile on his face. "I may have knocked her together, but the idea was Mr. Ismay's. He envisioned a steamer so grand in scale and so luxurious in its appointments that its supremacy would never be challenged. And here she is," He affectionately thumped our table. "willed into solid reality." I grinned at Mr. Andrews. A sweet and charming man, he was.

As Cal let out a, "Here, here," I looked over at Rose who was, strangely, lighting a cigarette. She put it in her mouth, inhaled, and then let out a puff of smoke. I was surprised, I mean, she smoked, of course. So do I, we lived in Europe for god's sake but Rose wasn't one to smoke in public. Smoking was more of a thing she and I did alone, when no one was watching.

Ruth leaned over to Rose and whispered. "You know I don't like that, Rose."

She turned her head towards her mother, but instead of doing as she was told and putting the cigarette out, she blew a cloud of smoke into her mother's face. Cal sighed, reached over and snubbed out the cigarette.

"She knows." the waiter suddenly came up and Cal placed the order. " Mm, we'll both have the lamb, with very little mint sauce." He turned to Rose. "You like lamb, don't you, sweet pea?"

Rose looked at him and put on a tight smile that was supposed to fool everyone... not me.

There was a pause when suddenly Molly spoke up. "You gonna cut her meat for her, there, too Cal?" She laughed, then asked. "Hey, who came up with the name Titanic... was it you, Bruce?"

Mr. Ismay beamed. " Yes, actually. I wanted to convey sheer size. And size means stability, luxury and above all, strength." I picked up my glass, taking a few sips.

For the first time in the past hour, Rose spoke up. "Do you know of Dr. Freud, Mr. Ismay? His ideas about the male occupation with size might be of particular interest to you." When I heard this, water went down the wrong way and I began to silently attempt to stop myself from laughing, choking myself in the process. Mr. Andrews was chuckling quietly as he began to pat my back, trying to stop my coughing.

This was not funny, however, to Ruth. "What's gotten into you?"

Rose didn't answer and stood. "Excuse me." and she began to walk away.

Ruth smiled at everyone. "I do apologize."

Molly got one look at Cal's face and warned. "She's a pistol, Cal. Hope you can handle her."

Cal put on a disgustingly fake smile. "Well, I might have to start minding what she reads from now on, won't I, Mrs. Brown."

"Freud. Who is he? A passenger?" Mr. Ismay asked.

I had finally stopped coughing and I stood. "If you'll excuse me, I think I should go after her. We wouldn't want her getting lost. Mr. Ismay, Molly, Mr. Andrews, Mrs. Dewitt Bukator, Cal thank you for lunch." Picking up my white hat, I began in the direction Rose headed. After a few minutes of wandering about on deck I found her, leaning against the railing, looking out to sea.

Silently, I walked up behind her and put a gentle hand on her shoulder. Without even the slightest hesitation she put her hand over mine and sighed, "I'm sorry, Annie."

"You don't have to be sorry, Rose." I moved closer to the railing, putting my elbows on the polished wood. "I actually thought it was funny."

There was no response. She looked down at the lower decks, looked back to the ocean, then for just a moment she looked back to the deck. I turned her towards me, whispering. "You know you can talk to me, right? If anything's bothering you, I'll be here." We looked into each other's eyes. Her's searching mine with the desperation of a person who was truly trapped. She was about to respond when Cal came up behind her, grabbing her arm roughly.

"What is the matter with you, Rose?" Cal asked, his eyes blazing.

"Do you mind?" Rose asked, the kind understanding gone from her. She pulled away her arm but he grabbed her again.

"You embarrassed both your Mother and me with that little stunt of yours. I won't have it, Rose." He hissed. Rose pulled away again and began to walk away. Cal ran a hand through his hair, then his eyes of ice turned to me. "I hope you're proud." And he walked away.

I let out a stress-filled breath and put my head in my hands as they sat on the railing. _God, I just want to escape from this life so badly._ I don't fit in, never have. All my life I've felt like I was contained in a claustrophobic box. That I couldn't ever truly show myself. I ripped my hat off, pulling out the pins that held my elbow length hair up, letting the ocean wind whip it around. Looking out to the Atlantic, I couldn't help but smile at the beauty of it all; the deep blues and greens and then the brilliant gold of the sun reflecting off the water.

My eyes then moved down to the deck below mine and the first thing that caught my eye was a man. He had brownish-red hair, a handsome face, and from what I could tell, kind, green eyes.

He was with two other men, one dark skinned and the other a golden blonde. He took off his tattered bowler hat and squinted up at me. I could just barely make out something that the blond man was saying, "Not very good...own advice...gawking at her." I was about to turn and head back inside but before I could even look away from his eyes, a strong gust of wind blew my hat off the railing and down towards the group.

"Shit!" I gasped, running towards the gate leading down to the lower deck... to the other world…the world of the unknown.

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Tommy's POV

"Do you make any money with your drawings?" I asked my new companion. He didn't answer, just kept staring past my shoulder. Confused I turned around to see what he was looking at and then I saw... _her_.

Well, there were two girls, and I'm pretty sure Jack was looking at the red head. She was pretty enough, sure, but the one of the two that caught my eye was the blonde. She truly was the most beautiful creature I'd ever seen. Her pale skin was glowing in the golden light of the sun, her blue eyes filled with understanding (toward her friend, I was guessing. There was no way they were sisters.), and an overall loveliness about her. But what hopes would I have for ever getting even few feet from her ever again... she was clearly first class and I was third class steerage.

I turned to Jack. "Ohh, forget it, boyo. You'd as like have angels fly out of your arse as get next to the likes of her." Assuring myself more than Jack.

After a few more seconds of staring up at the railing, Jack sighed. "Yeah, I guess you're right." But no matter how hard I tried, I had to turn around again; to look up at her. She was alone this time, her head in her hands, taking deep breaths, as if she were distressed. When she finally did look up, she smiled out at the Atlantic, took her hat off her head, taking out 8 or so pins and letting her golden hair cascade down her back and shoulders, ending around her elbows.

Then unexpectedly she turned her gaze down to our group. Well, me in particular. Instead of her smile disappearing, though, it broadened. I had to take off my hat and put it in front of my eyes, shielding them from the sun, just to make sure it wasn't an illusion. She was smiling at me? Me? I was third class... I was scum under her boot. I was nothing compared to her. But the smile remained there on her lovely face.

"You aren't very good at taking your own advice, Tommy. Look at you, you're gawking at her." Jack said. But I ignored him. But the smile faltered as a big gust of wind sent both her hair and her hat flying. I distinctly heard her say the word, "Shit!" - which caused my eyes to widen. A first class woman with a sailor's mouth was out of the ordinary - and began running down the steps leading to our deck.

Looking up I saw the hat doing a number of twists and circles in the air before the wind died down, leaving the white thing at my feet. Leaning over, I picked it up and was greeted by the vision of the girl. Once she reached me she was slightly winded – corset, I'm guessing – but she gave me a slight smile as she said. "Thank you, you just saved me quite a bit of grief."

"Not a problem, lass." I replied, smirking at her.

For a moment we were silent until she gave me a strange look and asked. "Can I have it back, then?"

I started to feel my neck get hot with embarrassment but quickly covered it by saying. "I think I'll have yer name first." She raised an elegant eyebrow. "I'd like to know who I'm returnin' this hat to."

Rolling her blue eyes she said. "Annie- I-I mean, Annalisa. Annalisa Callaghan."

My smile broadened. "I think I'll just stick with Annie."

"Fine – Annie." She held out her hand. "Can I have my hat back now, please?"

"Well, don't ya wanna know who yer gettin' your hat back from? Knight in shinin' armor and all that." Tommy heard Jack and Fabrizio snicker from the side, but ignored them.

"No, I just want it—,"

"Tommy Ryan is the name," he grabbed her hand and kissed her knuckles, leaving a look of surprise on her face. "Pleasure to meet ya."

A light blush painted her cheeks that made Tommy smile. She cleared her throat and started, "Can I-?"

"Have yer hat back? Yes." He handed her the hat and she took it.

She stood there, looking rather confused for a moment and then slowly turned and started to walk away.

"G'bye, Annie!" He called out over the wind.

She stopped abruptly at the stairs and then turned, saying, "Goodbye, Tommy."

**Kay, heh, you guys probably wanna kill me or something. I know that it took forever to even get a second chapter up, but I swear I had good reasons. I so incredibly busy with school and homework and things that I just couldn't stick to my writing. I'll try my very best to be more reliable. It is winter break here after all. **** I hope you enjoyed the chapter and the meeting of Mr. Ryan and Ms. Callaghan**


	3. Chapter 3

**Surprise! New Chapter!**

That night at dinner, Rose could not be reached. All through out the meal, people would laugh and try to engage her in the conversation, but the most she could pull off was a tight smile. Everyone else played if off as sea sickness maybe, but when I pulled away from the throng of riches and thoughtless laughter, I looked into her eyes. I could see it as she stared, unseeing into the faces that surrounded her. Something inside was breaking; becoming unhinged in her. She was pleading for help, though no one paid her any notice. I knew, because I'd felt it. Though, it was different for her. One little detail was different: Cal. I wasn't losing control on my life… yet. She was. And I would be acting the same exact way she was, if I had to marry him.

At one point, she pushed her chair back and stood. Everyone stopped their conversations and stared at her. Rose stood there, silent, mouth open as though wishing to say something but not being able to get the words to come out. I noticed her distress and stood as well and got half the eyes off of her. Quickly, I thought up a lie, "Rose and I are rather tired, so if you would please excuse us, we'll be heading back to our cabins. Thank you for a wonderful evening."

Grabbing my fan from the table, I went over to the opposite side and linked arms with my friend, whispering, "Come, Rose." Everyone made their formal goodbyes and we made our way out of the dining room. For awhile, we strode down the corridor, not speaking, when Rose came to a halt.

I looked into her face and asked, "What is it?"

For a moment, she was quiet, but then, in a toneless voice, she said, "I have to do something."

"Do what?"

"Something."

"Well, I'll come with yo-,"

"_I_ have to do something. _Alone_."

Her words slightly stung me, but in a quiet voice, I said, "Alright. Do what you have to do, then." My hurt feelings must have shown on my face, because she took on a look of apologetic concern. She took my face in her hands and said, "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to snap. It's just important. Forgive me?"

I nodded.

"Good," she pulled me into a huge and whispered, "I love you, Annie. Thank you for everything you've ever done. I'm lucky to have you as a best friend."

"Me, too." I said, hugging back.

She pulled away with a small smile, "Now, don't wait up for me. I might be awhile."

"Okay, but don't blame me if you catch your death or fall overboard."

She laughed, but it didn't sound right. It sounded forced. "Right. Falling overboard. Goodnight, Annie."

"Goodnight, Rose." And I stood there, watching her walk down the corridor and around the corner. I sighed and moved to the window, that looked out onto the deck. I put my hand to the glass, feeling the cold surface that met my palm. _There's nothing better to do_, I thought to myself. So I found an open door and walked into the crisp, cold air, breathing in deeply. Pulling my wrap tighter around my body, I moved down the deck, listening to the water as the giant that was Titanic pushed its way through the freezing liquid. A few minutes passed when I reached the stair way that only a few hours ago, I had gone down. The chains rattled and the sign fluttered in the wind. Third Class Deck, it read. Looking around and seeing no one, I shrugged and moved down the staircase and went to the railing, looking out into the darkness. A breeze blew into my face, feeling cool against my skin. Taking a deep breath, I closed my eyes and just listened.

"Beautiful, lass." Floated from behind me. I gasped and turned. Standing there was the same young man from earlier. I put my hand to my heart in relief, seeing that it wasn't a stranger.

"Mr. Ryan," I breathed, as a relieved smiled started on my lips. "you scared me."

"Sorry, lass, didn't mean to." He moved beside me at the railing, leaning on his arms.

"I agree, by the way. It is beautiful. The night."

"That tis true. But I was more talkin' about you. And really, call me Tommy. Mr. Ryan is a me father, not me."

I felt a blush creeping up my cheeks, "Thank you… Tommy."

"My pleasure, Miss Annie."

I chuckled and looked over at him, "So, Tommy Ryan, what are you doing up on a deck , wandering all by yourself?"

"Ohhh, it got far too crowded down in the dance hall and I needed some air. What about you, lass? Didn't feel like chatting over tea with the high ladies of society?"

I rolled my eyes, "I just needed to get away."

"Don't enjoy the high and mighty life style?"

For a moment, I didn't answer, "No. No, actually, I don't." I looked over at him and there was a slight look of surprise on his face, "I know, I know. Poor little rich girl, you have all these nice things are you're still not happy? What more do you need?"

"Well, money doesn't make happiness, Annie. I mean, look at me: All I have are the clothes on my back and the luck o' the Irish with me. But I'm here, on the grandest ship in the world, talking to you. I'm happy as a clam." He said, pulling a cigarette out of his coat pocket.

I chuckled and looked at him, asking, "Do you always try to be charming with girls you barely know?"

He lit up and took a drag. Smiling, he blew out the smoke, saying, "Depends," He put the cigarette between his lips, holding it with his teeth while he talked, "Is it working?"

I reached over and took the cigarette from his mouth and took a drag, "It just might be."

Tommy was just about to open his mouth to say something when suddenly a piercing scream rang through the night air.

"What the hell was that?" Tommy asked.

The sound had come from the right of them, off near the bow of the ship. I threw the cigarette over the railing and grabbing Tommy's hand, I exclaimed, "Come on!" We ran towards the bow and saw a young man, reaching over the railing and he was trying to pull someone back over.

"Jack?" Tommy called out. The young man turned his head to see who had called his name.

He cried out, "Tommy, help me get her back over the railing!"

Tommy rushed over to help and I followed. Leaning over, I looked at who the two men were trying to save and I saw none other than Rose.

"Rose?" I screamed, and took hold of her arm, tugging as hard I could. With our combined effort, we pulled her back over, but losing our footing, we tumbled to the deck. Tommy had fallen on top of me and Rose on top of Jack. We lay there, panting for a moment when suddenly we heard the sound of rushing footsteps coming our way.

Then someone said, "What's this?" It was two members of the crew. They looked over the situation and suddenly were hauling Tommy and Jack off and handcuffing them...

Cal had shown up and was pushing around Jack and Tommy when Rose interrupted him.

"Cal! Cal, it was an accident!"

"What? An accidental robbery?

I butted in, "_No_. Rose and I, we were looking over the edge at the-,"

Rose added in enthusiastically, "Yes, at the, uh, the—"

"Propellers?"

"Yes! The propellers. I leaned too far over and I slipped."

"If these two young men hand not come along, both of us would have gone overboard."

Cal looked skeptically at us, "Is that true?"

"Yes, sir." Both answered.

"Now, if we could dispose of the handcuffs, please?" I asked and they were quickly taken off. "I need a moment with Mr. Ryan."

Tommy and I walked over to the railing. He was rubbing his wrists. "Thanks for getting us out of that, lass."

"You're welcome."

"So, now that you've gotten me out of going to jail, I need to ask: Will I ever see you again?"

I looked down and then back up at him, smiling, "I would love to. When?"

"Tomorrow night. Meet me here at 10:00. If you can, that is."

"Please, you'll be saving me from a very dull evening."

"Great. I'll show you a real party." He said, a smirk forming on his lips.

"Annie!" Rose called.

"I'll be right there!" I called out. I turned to Tommy, "I'll be here. Tomorrow night."

"Tomorrow night." He took my hand in his and gave it a light kiss, never taking his eyes off mine. "G'night, Annie Callaghan."

"Goodnight, Tommy Ryan." I whispered and gathering my skirts, I ran to catch up with Rose.

**Yay! I finished a new chapter! I hope you enjoyed it! Review, please! :D**


	4. Chapter 4

**I love you guys… so much. Thank you, my fellow fanfiction readers. **

**Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters from Titanic or Titanic the ship in any way. Just writing about it. So please, don't sue me.**

I stood, grasping the bedpost of Rose's bed as Trudy tugged at the last few laces of my corset.

One strong tug caused me to gasp and put my hand to my stomach.

"I apologize, Miss."

Searching for air in my lungs, I asked, "Trudy, must you lace me up so tight?"

"It's a demand in London to have a small waist, Miss."

She began to tie up the laces to keep them in place when I exclaimed, "Well, girls in London must a desire not to breathe!"

From the across the room, Rose let out a chuckle as she put the final touches on her hair.

The maid helped me put the dress over my head and secured it. Pulling back, she asked, hands crossed, "Anything else I can do for you?"

"No thank you, Trudy." Rose said and with a nod, Trudy left the room. I moved over to the full length mirror and looked at the reflection. I stared at the reflection, who was looking back. I ran my hands down my figure with a smile. I couldn't help it, considering who I was going to be meeting tonight. For some reason it didn't matter that I'd just met Tommy, I just couldn't wait to see him.

Rose came up behind me and put her hands on my shoulders. She looked stunning in her fire red dress that matched her hair. A smile was on her features as I looked at her.

She put her chin on my shoulder and said, "You look beautiful, Annie. Honestly." I looked back at myself and saw the dress I was wearing. The dress was an ethereal white gown that flowed into a train. The short sleeves had cut out shoulders and gave off a romantic feel. My lips were painted red and in the form of a smile and I said, "Thank you, Rose. Look at you, though, Miss Red Dress."

She pulled back and rung her hand in a nervous manner, asking, "Do I really? Are you sure?"

"Of course I'm sure. What's wrong with you? You're acting so oddly."

She took a shaky breath and sat on the chair in front of her vanity mirror and let out, "Mr. Dawson is coming to dinner tonight."

"Mr. Dawson?" I asked, thinking for a moment. Then it dawned on me. "Ah, your savior from last night on the deck. And you're nervous because?..." I asked, leaving the question open, waiting for an answer.

"Well, he's a good man and I want to make sure he has a nice time and," As she said these things, a pink blush began to creep up her cheeks.

I interrupted, finishing her sentence, "And you've taken a liking to him, am I right?"

Rose opened her mouth, stammering, "I—well, yes. Yes, I have, but I'm not the only one! I saw you last night with that young man. Mr." she said, searching for his name.

"Ryan," I filled in, a smile on my face. "Tommy Ryan."

It was quiet for a moment and when I turned to Rose, she had a huge grin on her face. My smile disappeared instantly as I asked, "What?"

"Look at you! You're smitten with him! Oh, the world has to know!" She ran to the doors, leading to the veranda and yelled, "Annie Callaghan is in love!" I ran over to her and pulled her inside, shushing her and laughing at the same time.

"Would you be quiet, please?" I said.

"Well, who would have thought that _you_ would fall in love with a man you just met!"

"I'm not in love. I just – I enjoy his company a lot."

"Yes, I'm sure that's what it is." Rose said, rolling her eyes. "Now, come here, I need to do your hair." I did as I was told and looked in the mirror. _I wasn't in love… was I?_

_Dining Room_

"To making it count…" Rose said, raising her glass in a toast. We all followed in suit, taking a sip of our champagne. Looking over the top of my glass, I glanced at the clock on the wall. 9:54, it read. I put my glass back down on the table and leaned over to my mother, fan covering my face and whispered, "Mother, I'm not feeling very well. I think I'll be heading back to my cabin, if you don't mind."

"Can you not wait for 15 min-," My mother's discreet whisper was interrupted by my father's booming voice.

"Is there a problem, ladies?"

My mother slowly turned to her husband and said, "Not at all. Your daughter isn't feeling very well at the moment, though and-," She was interrupted again.

"Well, she should head back to her cabin, then." He said, taking a one sip more than he really needed.

Mother put on a tight smile and said in a strained voice, "What a fine idea, darling."

Father motioned to me with his glass, "Go right ahead, peaches." and took another gulp.

I smiled at him, pushed back and said, "Thank you, Father." I turned to the table and continued, "Have a lovely night, everyone." As I pushed in my chair, I caught Rose's eye and she gave me a knowing smile.

"Feel better, Annie!" She called to me as I left.

"Thank you!"

I made my way quickly to the elevators, telling the assistant to go to the deck. I managed a blank canvas of an expression until I left the elevator behind. I checked the time. 9:57. Sporadically, I broke into a run and then a walk until I reached the Third Class staircase. I paused and ran my hands down the front of my skirt, getting out invisible wrinkles and ripped the pins out of my hair causing it to fall into curls. I took a final deep breath and made my way down the stairs. I proceeded down the deck, especially aware of the _click, click, clicking_ of my heels on the wood. But the sound came to a halt when I saw Tommy leaning on the railing, facing the sea.

"You're early." I called out. He whipped his head around and on his face was a smile that caused my breath to catch in my throat.

"So are you." He said, walking towards me. When he reached me, he gave my hand a kiss, "Lookin' stunning, as always, lass." I blushed and couldn't help but grin. He continued, "So, Miss Annie Callaghan, are you ready for a real party?"

I nodded enthusiastically. "Well, then take my hand and we'll head off!" I laughed and did as I was told and soon we found ourselves at the top of a staircase, leading down to a lower room. From this room a feeling of happiness radiated along with the pulsing beat of music. Picking up my skirts, I took dragged Tommy down the stairs, laughing as we went. We were greeted by a scene that exactly matched the music. People were smiling, drinking, smoking, laughing and dancing. It was a shining, gleaming beautiful image that I had only seen in my dreams. I couldn't help but let out a bubble of laughter as I looked at Tommy and yelled, "This is amazing!"

He nodded in agreement and yelled back, "What did I tell you?"

I looked at the crowd and said, "Dance with me!"

"Let's go!"

"Wait, wait, wait!" I exclaimed. Picking up my skirts, I took one shoe off and then the other, placing them on a nearby table. Tommy gave me a smirk and I said, "If I'm going to dance, I'm going to dance right!" Grabbing his hand, I pulled him into the crowd. He pulled me close, to the point where we were chest to chest. For a moment, we stood there, looking into each other's eyes, not moving. Slowly, a sideways smile grew on his lips and he said, "Shall we?"

"We shall." I said, grinning back up at him. Suddenly, we started moving around the room at a quick pace, spinning and laughing as we went. For the next few minutes we did this and I couldn't believe how much _fun_ I was having. Then, I realized that I hadn't actually had this much fun in a long time and quite honestly, I didn't want it to stop. I wanted to stay here, dancing and laughing. I wanted to stay here with Tommy.

I was taken out of my reverie by the abrupt feeling of bumping into someone else. I turned around, ready to apologize, "Oh, I'm sorry. It was an ac-," but when I saw who it was, the words stopped. "Rose?" Standing before me was my best friend.

"Annie. Oh, Annie, Annie, Annie. Lying to Father and Mother about being sick to sneak out and see Mr. Ryan – to Tommy, she said – Hello, Mr. Ryan."

"I'm not the only one! Look at you!" Looking over at the young man beside her, I said, "Hello, Jack. Nice to see you again."

"You too, Annie. What are you doing down here?"

"Oh, Tommy invited me." I said.

"Did he now?" Jack said, giving Tommy a knowing smile, which he returned. "So, Annie, are you having fun?"

"Oh, yes! It's unbelievable down here!"

"Well, go on, boyo, have fun with your lady and let me have my time with mine."

"Alright! See you later!" And the dancing commenced for what seemed like hours when we stumbled to a table, laughing. Tommy picked up two beers and placed one in front of me and took a gulp of his. I followed in suit and Tommy looked at me, impressed.

"What? Think a rich girl can't drink?" I said, laughing and he laughed with me. Leaning over the table, he said in my ear, "Come back to me cabin with me?"

I looked him in the eye and nodded.

He took my hand and led me up the stairs and down multiple corridors until we got to a door, which Tommy proceeded to open. Inside was a small, but cozy room with a pair of bunk beds.

Tommy closed the door behind us and struck a match, lighting two candles, bathing the walls in a warm light. He sighed and said, "I know it ain't much, but… tis home righ' now." He motioned to the bottom bunk, "come on, have a seat."

I did as I was told and sat beside him. For a few moments, we sat in silence before I said, "Thank you, Tommy."

"For what?" He questioned,

"For… everything. For tonight, for inviting me here, for… freeing me."

For a second he didn't say anything, but then he took my chin in between his pointer finger and thumb, making me look up at him. Then he said, staring into my eyes, "Trust me, Annie, it was entirely and completely my pleasure."

Slowly then, our faces began to move closer together until our foreheads were resting on the other's and out noses touched. A second later, our lips brushed and my eyes closed as our lips touched. He lips were soft as they caressed mine, moving in sync. I could taste the beer we had been drinking before we came to the cabin and it caused me to smile. I moved one arm to his chest and the other to his cheek, which was rough with stubble. He pulled me closer to him, wrapping his strong arms around me, bringing me into a warm embrace. When we ran out of air, we pulled back and looked at each other and smiled.

"Wow…" I breathed

"That's right, lass." He said, chuckling. He pulled me to his chest, letting me rest my head there.

"I can hear your heart beating, Tommy." I whispered.

"Yeah? Is it thrummin' as loud as I can hear it?"

I giggled. "Just about." I looked up at him then, "but don't worry," I took his hand and put it where my heart was, "Mine's beating just as hard."

He then leaned down and kissed me lightly, lying down on the bunk. I then closed my eyes and began to drift off with the strong beating of Tommy's heart in my ears. When I was almost asleep, I heard his soft Irish voice whispering, "I think I love you, Annie…"

"Tommy… I think I love you, too." I then drifted off into a dream in the arms of the man who brought me back to life. I was in the arms of the man I loved.

**Whoa! Just blurting out chapters here! Lovin' on Annie and Tommy and all of you who review. Love you. A lot. You make me smile. So please continue. **


	5. Chapter 5

**New Chapter! I hope you enjoy it!**

My dreams were disrupted by the change in color behind my eyelids; a warm orange color. Moaning, I rubbed my eyes, and opened them unwillingly. The first thing I saw was the small, round porthole that constituted as a window, letting the light of morning flood in. With a content sigh, I closed my eyes once more, ready to fall back into slumber. But then something occurred to me: morning. My eyes snapped open, clear of any sleepiness that was there before. Abruptly, I sat up, hitting my head on the top bunk in the process. I let out a loud, "Ow!" but didn't pay attention to the throbbing on my head as I crawled over Tommy and onto the floor.

The commotion I made must have woken Tommy because from behind me, I heard as drowsy, "What's goin' on round here? Don't ya know there's people sleepin' in -oh" I turned and saw Tommy sitting on the edge of his bunk, rubbing his eyes, a sleepy smile on his face as he said, "Mornin', lass. What're ya doin'?"

Turning to the small mirror on the wall, I ran my fingers through my hair fervently as I said, "I have to leave, Tommy. Now."

I saw Tommy stand up in the reflection and he asked, "Leave? This early in the mornin'?" Tommy's mind obviously hadn't gotten up to its full functioning ability as I had to explain this to him.

"Yes, Tommy. I fell asleep and stayed the night. I have to get back to my parents!"

It suddenly hit him. "Oh…oh! Yes, ya should go and quickly, Annie."

"I know." I said, running for the door and turning the knob. But before I could get far, there was a pair of arms wrapped around my waist and a whispered, "Wait, wait, wait." in my ear. I turned and looked up at Tommy and looked into his eyes. He brought his head down to mine, covering my lips with his in a passionate kiss that I couldn't help but get lost in. The feeling of urgency that had just been within me, vanished with the pressure of his soft lips.

As he pulled back, I looked up at him with hooded eyes. Tommy then asked, "You'll be comin' back now, won't ya?

I sighed into a smile as I said, "God, I hope so." I shook my head in resolve and continued, "Yes, yes, I'll be back. No matter what happens, I'll find you." I stood on my tip toes and gave him a quick peck, saying, "I love you."

He looked into my eyes and whispered, "I love you, too." And then, picking up my skirts, I ran down the corridors. Following the signs, I made my way up to the third class deck, up the staircase, and eventually to the first class cabin hallways. Slowing my run, both not to look out of place and because of the tightness of my corset, I made my way to my door. Turning the knob, I felt I was in the clear. _If anyone asks where I was, I'll just say I was bathing and didn't hear them, _I thought.

But suddenly from behind me, I heard a voice say something that made my shoulders tense, "That is quite a beautiful dress, Annalisa, but if I'm not mistaken, I do believe you wore it last night at dinner. Didn't you?"

Slowly, I turned and standing before me was Caledon Hockley. I put on a bright smile, "Cal, good morning. How are you?"

"Don't avoid the question, Miss Callaghan. Did you or didn't you?"

Looking down at my dress, I feigned innocence, "This? Well, yes, I did, but you see, I went back to my cabin early last night, as you know and simply fell asleep in it. Incredibly tired."

"And you didn't change before going about the ship? An evening dress doesn't seem very appropriate for strolling along the deck."

"My cabin maid wasn't around and I was horribly hungry."

Cal advanced on me, causing me to put my back against the wall, "Don't lie to me. My man, Lovejoy, saw you _and_ Rose down on the lower deck with those two men – that _third class scum._"

My mouth spoke before I could think and I exclaimed, "They are not scum!" and then my hand clamped over my mouth before I could say anything more incriminating. A smirk had made its way to Cal's mouth. I sighed, giving up and willing to do anything to keep him quiet, "Cal, please… you can't tell my parents. They won't understand."

"Understand? Why should they? Why would they let their only daughter go _whoring_, not only with a man, but a man of third class status; A worthless man."

I bit my tongue, but felt a prickling feeling of anger on my neck. I gritted out, "Please-,"

"You know, I think I will tell your Mother and Father. Let them see why people call you an undisciplined, horrid excuse of a girl." He looked me over. "You could use some real punishment. If Ruth has any sense, she won't let you anywhere near Rose… and that will make my job quite a bit easier." And off he went down the hall to seal my fate. I clenched my jaw, trying not to let out a sob as angry tears ran down my cheeks.

_15 minutes later; Annie's cabin_

"And how dare you _lie_ to both your Father and I! We trusted you completely and look what you do: go running off with-with a _third class Irish man_!" My Mother spat out the last four words as if they tasted foul on her tongue.

I looked up from my hands, which were clasped tightly in my lap and said, emotion filling my voice, "Please, Mother, let me explain—,"

"Explain? As if you won't lie to us again. Do you know what Ruth asked of me today? Do you know?"

Quietly, I answered, "No, Mother."

"She requested that I no longer let you and Rose associate. She _and_ Mr. Hockley think you are a horrible influence on her and now I can't say that I disagree with them! No wonder Rose has been acting out! You probably forced the ideas on her!"

"I assure you, I didn't. Her distaste for Cal is all her own." I said in a steely tone.

"Shut your mouth!" Looking into my Mother's eyes, you could see the fire of anger burning. "And this man – this Mr..." She said, looking for his name.

"Ryan." I gave her.

"Mr. Ryan. Who knows what could have happened! You could have been killed, or used for ransom or even worse," she said the next part in a whisper. "you could have been raped!"

"He's not like that!" I cried out.

"Don't you raise your voice at me. You don't know what he's like, you've only just met him!"

"Then let me go back, let me get to know him better! Please!"

"Certainly not. You will not be seeing that man _ever_ again. I forbid you."

I stood up in outrage, "Mother!"

"Don't you 'Mother' me!"

"You have to let me see him!"

"I have to do no such thing. I am your Mother and I say you will stay away from him."

"But Mother, I love him!"

"You do not. You know nothing of love, you foolish girl."

"And you do? Please, I doubt you even love Father considering how much you scowl at him! You don't touch, you don't kiss, you don't do anything! You don't know what love is!"

"_You _are out of line!"

I took a couple deep breaths and said in an even tone, "It doesn't matter what you say, because I _do_ love him and he and I will be together. We'll find a way."

Suddenly, every bit of rage in my Mother's body was put into one simple strike. The sound of the back of my Mother's hand slapping my cheek echoed through the room. Just from the force of the blow, I fell back onto the small couch I was just sitting on. For a moment, I saw stars as I put my hand to my stinging cheek. Pulling my hand away, I saw blood on my palm. Looking in the mirror to the right of me, I could see a long scratch across my cheek. I glanced at the hand that struck me and saw my Mother's wedding ring. That must have been it. For a few moments, I couldn't speak. I was so shocked. My Mother had _struck_ me. Never before had she done this.

Slowly, my Mother moved toward me with a wet cloth in her hand as she sat beside me on the couch. Taking my wrist, she removed my palm and replaced it with the warm cloth, causing the wound to sting. I winced as she lightly began to dab at the damage she had caused.

Quietly, she said as she continued to clean, "One day you will thank me."

I didn't answer.

"You will not see him, Annalisa, you won't." She took my chin and turned my face to look at her. "Promise me."

I looked her in the eyes and said, "I promise." My Mother smiled and kissed my forehead, moving towards the door. What my Mother didn't know, though, is that my free hand was behind my back and the fingers on that hand… they were crossed.

**There you are! Please, please, please review! I love getting them. **


	6. Author's Note

**This is purely an Author's Note, not a new chapter… I'm sorry.**

Lovelies, I have some… disappointing news, I suppose. I currently can't continue this story. Now, whoa, whoa, whoa – I'm not QUITING it. It's simply going on Hiatus. It's not because I'm lazy (although I am). This year, I am taking an AP Literature class and over the summer, I've been assigned a lot of reading and work. Then, on top of that, I'm working at my job, singing and whole bunch of other stuff that you don't have to care about. I simply don't have the time right now.

BUT

I recently started up (only hours ago) a blog at this address:

.com/profile/MarceaMarieKiger

It's a site run by John Green (the author) and Hank Green who make up the vlogbrothers on Youtube. If I was going to have a blog anywhere, it'd be there. So, if you think it's worth the trouble, over the next year, you can wander over to that address and see if there's anything worth reading. I hope I can do my fellow Nerdfighters justice.

I'll get a chapter in sometimes within this year, if I have time. I promise I'll try.

OR

You can follow me on twitter at: MarcyMKiger


	7. Chapter 6

Next Day…

Tommy's POV

I stood, leaning on the cold, metal railing of the ship, looking out to sea, feeling uneasy. It had been a whole day since Annie had come to see me and it was worrying me something awful. Multiple scenarios played through my head, always involving two concepts: she was caught and not allowed to see me anymore or she discovered what a huge mistake she was making and was never going to speak to me again. I couldn't decide which was worse. Both made my heart hurt in a way I've never experienced. I'd never felt this way towards a woman - never have I felt like I needed one woman in my life so badly. Of course, back home I'd had many lasses through out my adolescent years, but Annie… gah, she was different. I wanted to marry her. Putting my head in my hands, I shook my head at the insanity of this thought. We had only met each other days ago, after all! And how could I ever ask her to give up her life and the safety that came with it to simply be with me?

Suddenly, I felt a hand lightly lay on my shoulder and my heart jumped with hope. Spinning quickly, I said, "Annie?" But my heart quickly sank as I saw, not Annie, but Jack standing before me, a sympathetic smile on his face. "Oh. Mornin', Jack."

"Sorry to disappoint you, buddy."

"Nah, don't worry about it, boyo. What do ya be needin'?"

I turned to face the water again and Jack walked to stand beside me. "I actually was hoping to get some advice. Smitten man to smitten man." I looked over at him, one eyebrow raised. "You are smitten with the girl, aren't you? Every time you looked at her, you were smiling."

I chuckled and replied, "Smitten I am."

"Alright, good."

"What did ya need advice on?"

Jack sighed and ran his hands through his hair and said, "I've got a bit of dilemma on my hands, you see. I went to talk to Rose this morning and she told me that we couldn't see each other again. I knew this wasn't Rose talking, but her mother - the lady hates me. Looks at me like a bug that needs to be squashed. But God, if Rose doesn't get out of there… she's gonna die, Tommy."

"We all die, Jack. At one point or another."

"I don't mean her body. I mean her spirit, that thing inside her that I… I love so much."

"Did ya tell her that?"

"Yeah, but she told me to go away and I don't know what I should do now. Every instinct in my body is telling me to go after her, persue her until she listens to me, but… I don't know, Tommy. What should I do?"

I paused, thinking about it. Then I went on to say, "Go away for awhile."

"Go away?"

"Yeah. Just let it all settle. You said you love her, right?"

"Yes."

"And she loves you?" I asked, looking at him.

He was quiet for a second. "Yeah… yeah, I think she does."

"Then if she loves ya, she'll come back to ya."

He nodded his head, thinking it over and asked, "You sure?"

I chuckled, shaking my head, "I'm not really sure of anything at this point."

"What do you mean?"

I sighed and said, "Annie… I haven't seen her in a whole day. She hasn't talked to me or tried to contact me and uh,… it's scaring me a little."

"Scaring you?"

"Yeah. Jack," I looked him in the eye. "I love this girl to the moon and back." I then continued to voice all my fears about Annie to Jack and he listened attentively, taking it all in. "What do ya think?"

"I think… this is example two of how you don't listen to your own advice."

"Huh?"

"What did you just tell me, Tommy?"

I thought about it. "If she loves you, she'll come back."

"Right!" He said with a laughing smile on his face. "Now, I don't know about you, but I _know_ that that Callaghan girl loves you back. So don't worry. She'll find a way back to you no matter what happened."

I smiled, comforted by the words. "Alright. Thanks, Jack."

"No problem." He motioned over his shoulder in the opposite direction and started walking backwards as he said, "I'm gonna take a walk, kay? I'll talk to you later."

"Kay, boyo. Have a nice one. Don't worry about the girl!" I yelled

And laughing, he said over his shoulder, "Don't you worry about the girl either!"

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**It's not much, but it's something after a long time. I just thought about it last night and wrote it up.** **Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to you all.**


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